The Forest Child
by inu-babe34
Summary: Kagome, the elven child of the sun and the forest, is responsible for turning all the leaves from green to red in the autumn season. But one day she's discovered by wolves, and found that she doesn't want to leave one in particular. KougaXKagome AU


**Quick beginning note! This is for one of my very wonderful readers, Kouga's Older Woman ;3 She reviews EVERYTHING that I post, and I thank her so much for that! So therefore I am writing her a short one-shot C: Also, this is my first Kouga/Kagome even though i absolutly ADORE this couple :D and it's also my first story that's an AU(alternate universe) in the feudal times. So I hope you all enjoy, especially you Kouga's Older Woman! Also I don't own Inuyasha or anything affiliated, Rumiko Takahashi does. T.T**

Kagome wandered around in the dense forest, searching for the end of her task. She looked high up into the trees, searching for the last speckle of green. It was the middle of autumn, just about time for her chore to be complete, but she had to find her last leaf, otherwise the forest would be at an imbalance. A small imbalance, but a problem none the less.

And then she saw it, there at the very top of a tall maple tree was a lone dark green leaf. Her footsteps barely rustled the ground beneath her as she hurried towards the tree. She ascended the tree with the ease of any squirrel until she was at the very topmost branch on it. She shut her beautiful green and brown hazel eyes and then slowly put the pad of her index finger on the lone green leaf. She softly drug it across the leaf until her finger ran out of foliage. When Kagome opened her eyes it was then a beautiful shade of red, just like every other leaf in her forest.

She nimbly began to hop down from branch to branch until she was once more safely on the forest floor. Just then a breeze picked up from the northeast, blowing her long ebony locks behind her. Along with her she could smell the soft scent of the forest. Trees, foliage, a few animals, and...water? That spiked her interest seeing as she hadn't had much to drink in days. So a small stream or pond would be most enjoyable.

Soon enough a small stream was revealed to her in a clearing. She smiled as the sun warmed her skin and enveloped a bright light around her. Her father was the sun after all, just like the forest was her mother. Being an elf had it's advantages, one of them being that she had such a close connection to the planet around her. As she walked towards the small stream though she couldn't help but sence that something wasn't quite right today. But since it didn't seem to be too immediate of a danger, if it was dangerous at all, she brushed if off and began to drink her fill from the stream.

When she was finished she wiped her mouth with the backside of her hand and stood up. Since her job was now finished she decided that it was time to head back to the home she had made for herself. It wasn't all that far away, so she decided to take a quick run back.

*T*F*C*

The run home had been longer than expected and so now it was nearly an hour before dark. Well, she guessed that seeing as the sun was just about ready to start setting. Kagome gathered a few clover and hazel buds before walking to her small hut. Basically it was just two fallen oak trees that she had propped up against a large cherry willow tree. Once inside she picked up her mortar and pistol and began grinding the buds up until they were pasty. Then she added some water that had been caught in one of the pots she kept outside during storms. Hesitantly she brought the substance to her lips and shot it straight down her throat, not at all wanting to taste the bitter substance.

She really hated drinking that horrible concoction, but she needed it for sustanance. There really was no other food around. She'd have to go scavenge around for berries and roots miles away, and that really wasn't something that she wanted. All of a sudden that strange feeling was back, but stronger than ever. Her senses were on high alert, her elven ears perked up slightly when she heard some kind of noice coming from the northeast. She peeped out of her hut to get a better clue as to what was coming towards her.

Then a howl sounded out. Kagome's heart nearly stopped beating. Wolves. She took a cautious sniff, and that automatically confirmed it. Sure enough a large pack of wolves were on their way to her, and fast. Without even thinking of other options Kagome bounded out of her hut and began running at full speed.

But no matter how hard she pushed herself she could still hear the wolves catching up to her. Minutes flew by like seconds in her mind and soon enough they could see her through the thick foliage, and that just drove them more. Kagome tried to run faster, but she just couldn't manage to. The cloth tied around her feet to keep them protected were wearing thin and she could feel thorns and sticks dig into her skin, which just made the running more difficult than it already was.

Soon enough the wolves were at a distance where they could start nipping at her ankles and calves, and that made her even more desperate. So with one last bound she hopped up onto the low branches of an oak tree. The wolves took full advantage of that and began to jump up, snapping their jaws at her all the while. One of the larger wolves ran full on into the base of the tree, making it shake. This caused Kagome to loose her balance and topple towards the ground. She landed hard on the grass. The wolves seemed to have smiles on their faces as they slowly surrounded her. Tears pricked at her eyes as she realized that she was about to die.

"Stop!" She heard someone say and her head snapped towards the booming male voice. Standing not three meters away from her was a tall wolf demon. His mouth was a hard line, but she could see the curiosity dancing around in his icy blue eyes. He started to walk towards her, and she watched as the wolves made way for him. Just as she thought she was seriously done for, he held his hand out to her.

"I'm Kouga, leader of the Eastern wolf tribe. Come." He said and stuck his hand out a little further. She glanced at it warily but finally decided to take it. He helped pull her up to her feet so that she was standing right in front of him. "And who might you be?"

"I-I'm Kagome." She stuttered out with a voice like honey, despite her hardly ever using it. His lips turned up into a smile, showing off his pearly white fangs. She shivered as she was reminded that fangs nearly identical to those had almost just ripped her to pieces. The shiver caused some pain in her feet so she looked down to her abused apendages, as did the handsome wolf demon. Her feet were scratched all over and stained with blood.

"Well that won't do. Come, we'll return to my home and I'll patch those up for you." He said, and before she could protest she was already being carried back northeast. She was still wary of the demon and his wolves that were following them. What if they really still just wanted to eat her, but this was just an easier way to lure her in? Kouga could feel her nervousness.

"What has you so nervous Miss Kagome?" He asked as he looked down at the little woman who was pressed against his chest. Her head snapped up immediately to meet his gaze. She just decided to get it over with. No use in stewing over her fate, she might as well face it.

"Are you still going to eat me? Because if you are, will you please just do it now? I really don't like the anticipation." She told weakly. His eyes widened fractionally before he let out a low chuckle that she could feel go through her body.

"Absolutly not. Your scent was what intrigued me initially. I was merely curious. Speaking of that, what are you exactly? I've never met a being like you before." He confessed to her.

"I'm an elf. Daughter of the sun and the forest." She told him proudly, though she was still somewhat wary of the man. It was also kind of new to her, although she had seen both men and demons in her time, she had never actually spoken to one before. They had never even realized that she was there before.

"That's very interesting. Are there any more of you?" He asked her, honestly curious. Her face scrunched up in thought.

"Not that I know of. But there's a possibility there are more. But not here. This is my forest, no other elves would have business here. I get my chore done just fine without any help at all." She told him, but decided not to reveal what her chore was just yet.

"I see. So who do you stay with?" He asked her, but she could see something stirring in his eyes. She couldn't exactly decipher what it was, so she decided just to answer his question.

"I live alone, always have, always will." She said to him, and she could see the emotion swell in his eyes. "To tell you the truth, you're actually the first being I've ever talked to."

"That's quite hard to believe, but I doubt you would lie to me so I'll just say that's amazing." He said and looked down at her while she let out a long yawn. "You're tired. Sleep. We'll be at my home by the time you wake up." She tilted her head slightly, wondering if she really could. Did she trust him enough to fall asleep while she was in his arms? One last look into his eyes answered her question. She was more than safe, and with that she closed her eyes and almost immediately fell asleep.

*T*F*C*

When Kagome finally awoke from her sleep she noticed that it was very dark. And that she was no longer pressed to an armored chest. She looked behind her and noticed that there was a small candle burning in the corner of what seemed to be a stone cave. Also she was laying on what seemed to be a large futon, and she was covered with several warm brown furs. Not being farmiliar with her surroundings immediately made her uncomfortable, but soon enough she could smell Kouga approaching.

"Oh, you're awake." He said as he let himself into the cave through a small openeing covered with a cloth. He walked closer to her and sat down, leaning on the wall nearest her. "Did you sleep well?"

"Wonderfly. I didn't even notice when we arrived here. By the way, what time is it?" She asked him as she sat up, leaning on her left arm so she could face him.

"About an hour until dawn. We just arrived here not to long ago. But now that you're awake, I was wondering if you could answer some more questions of mine?" He wondered.

"I suppose that would be alright. Go ahead." She told him with a nod, now confident that she wouldn't be hurt while Kouga was around.

"First of all, where did you learn to speak? Since you never had any contact with people before." He asked her.

"I don't really know, I guess I've just always know how to speak. Then as I grew older, and when it wasn't autumn, I would sneak around villages and hear what they would say. That's how I learned alot of regular customs and the like." She told him, unknowingly answering his next question. But it brought up a whole new one.

"Why not in autumn? What's so important about autumn?"

"That's when I have to do my chore. I'm the one who changes the colors of all the leaves in the forest." She said, a hint of pride lacing her voice. It truly did look splendid and she wanted to share that it was all her doing. His eyes widened as she told him that, but she could also see a trace of disbelief in his eyes. "You don't quite belive me do you?" She asked him with a little bit of dissapointment. She wasn't lying.

"I want to, but that just seems a little bit far fetched. It would take an insane ammount of time to change every leaf in the forest." He told her, the disbelief in more prominent in his voice than in his expression.

"But it's the truth! Are there any green leaved trees around here still?" She asked, wanting to prove herself. He shook his head no. "Then I guess that I'll have to wait until next autumn to show you.

"I guess you will. But seeing as I don't know where you'll be in the forest, I think that you should stay here until then. So then you can show me personally." He said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. Kagome though this over in her head, and decided that it made sense, and really there wasn't any harm in it.

"I think that's a good idea. I swear, the first day of autumn you'll see that it really is me that must turn all the trees different colors." She told him with determination. His eyes met hers, but with a different kind of determination in his eyes.

*T*F*C*

As originally decided, Kagome stayed with Kouga and the other wolf demons. The two became close friends through the course of the end of fall and all of winter. And when everything else was blooming with the coming of spring, so was their love for each other. It was destiny that the two had come together on that mid autumn day in the forest. The two basked in each other's love the whole summer, until autumn began to sneak upon them.

By this time, Kouga began to believe that she really was the one who had to turn the leaves. And that meant that with the fall seaon, Kagome once more had to return to the forest for five long months. Kouga was adament that he go with her, but Kagome refused. She reminded him that he had a pack to rule over, and that leaving would certainly hurt the tribe. Although still upset about it, Kouga agreed with her that he could not go. It was set in stone that they had to be in two different places during this time, while Kagome was condemned to the forest that she had once called home.

On the last day of summer Kouga acompanied her to the edge of her forest, the place where they had to part. He told her that as soon as he saw the last green leaf turn colors, that he would come back to the edge of the forest and be waiting for her. She agreed to the plan and cried softly in his warm embrace, not wanting to leave her love. She then gave him one last quiet kiss, and then returned to her forest.

After Kagome had turned the last green leaf red she rushed to the boarder of the forest where sure enough, there was Kouga waiting for her. She ran to him and the two lovers were once again reunited. They returned to the wolf demon caves and spend all their days together until the begging of the fall when they knew they had to be seperated once again. Many years passed with them going along this system of being together for nine months, and then being apart for three.

But then one day in the winter, Kagome found herself pregnant with Kouga's child. The couple rejoiced at the thought of starting a family together, and the whole tribe celebrated with them. By the end of summer Kagome's abdomen was extremely heavy with their child, and soon enough she brought a baby girl into the world. The happy parents couldn't have been more proud, and they named their daughter Akiko, so that even when her mother was gone she could be reminded of the season that she helped create.

When Kagome had to leave that last day of summer it was even harder to part because of her newborn child, but not forgetting her duty, she did so. She missed both her beloveds terribly while she was gone, so it was an even better reunion when she met them at the border of the forest that year. This pattern happened until their daughter turned nine years old. She always missed her mother terribly while she was away, so this year as he mother walked away from her and her father, she had ran after her. While she ran her fingers accidently brushed against some of the green leaves growing on some low branches. So her parent's amazement, they had immediately changed color.

Akiko begged and pleaded with her parents to acompany her mother to help change the leaves. She reasoned that the task would be done faster and that they would be able to return faster than ever before. They finally gave in, and sure enough the last leaf turned red twice as fast as any of the previous years before. The family rejoiced when they were once again together at the wolf demon's caves. They decided that having Akiko go with Kagome was their best option, because that allowed them to be together as a family for ten and a half months rather than nine.

And that is the story of how autumn was shortened and the summer eventually became longer. Even now, all of the seasons get to equally share their time with another, letting everybody enjoy their favorite season just as much as anybody else. All thanks to the small family consisting of a wolf demon, his mate a forest elf, and their daughter who was the ultimate factor in making all of it possible.

**Whoa, that was WAY different than anything I've ever written before . I just came up with a fairy tale, all on my own XD I'm actually suprised with how easily it all flowed...I think it was quite original, don't you? Needless to say, this will be just a oneshot. Hope everyone enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed reading it. Also, I will be posting a picture I made of Kagome as a forest elf on my deviantart account. so please visit me at http:/ inu-babe34. deviantart. com just remove the spaces ;3 Well, talk to you all later! Please comment and i'll love u forever!**


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